Art of uniting metal members



March 10, 1925-; 1,529,445

A. MILLER ART OF UNITING METAL MEMBERS Filed June 28, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 E2 0672207. JZTZQTWZZZV,

March 10, 1925. 1,529,445

A. MILLER ART OF UNITING METAL MEMBERS Filed June 28, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Illllllllli PHIIIIIIIIIIIII the edges thereof to form,

of metal containers,-

.joint the metal of i Patented 10, 192 5,

PATENT OFFICE,

.mrnon mm, or on; rm'nmnrois. ear or ammo EE'IAL 11mm.

Application filed June 28,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, An'rnun MILLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oak Park, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Members, fication.

My invention relates, to the uniting of sheet of which the following is a specimore particularly, metal members at preferably, a fluid-tight joint, as forexample in the case such as milk cans.

One of my objects is to'provide a novel and simple method of producing such a which at one or both faces of the sheets, as desired, shall be of ferred way, I lap t sheet metal members to be united, and rep-v the desired relness, and be sufficiently smooth .to ren er the surfaces of the finished structure readily cleansable, this feature being of special value where the container is to be used for receiving liquid food, such as milk; another object is to provide a welded int which while smooth and of substantlally the same thickness as the sheets joined to ether shall be durable and strongyand ano th'er object is to provide a novel and highly desirable character of 'oint. Referring to the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 is a view in side elevation, with certain parts broken away, of a machine suitable for use in performing certain ofthe operations, in accordance with the preferred way of practicing my inventio for producing the finished joint. Figu e 2 is an enlarged section taken at the line 2-2 on Fig. 1 and viewed the direction of the arrows. Figure 3 is aview in side elevation of aportion of the machine of Figs. 1 and 2. Figure 4 is a section taken at the line 4-4 on Fig. 3 and viewed in the direction of the arrows. Figure 5 is a section taken at the line 5-5 on Fig. 3 and viewed in the direction of the arrows; and Figure 6, a section taken at the line 5-5 on Fig. 3 and viewed in the direction of the arrows.

In practicing in invention in the pree adjacent edges of the resented at 7 and 8, and -as shown in Fig.

, 4, and in such position unite them, fiatwise being r "at their overlapped portions, this accomplished in any desirable way, preferably by the well known Gefei stepwelding method involving the spot-welding togeth the Art of Uniting Metal 1 having an extension 12 at movable head 17 1922. Serial No; 571,424.

which extendslengthwise of, and continu-' ously along, without interruption, the overapped portions of the sheets. The sheets united, as stated, are then operated on at their overlapped edges to deflect these edges in opposite directions and throughout their length, into the positions shown in Fig. 5, wherein the edge of the plate 7 is deflected upwardly and the underlying edge portion of the plate 8 is deflected downwardly, and

the body portions of thesheets 7 and 8 are caused to extend in alignment with each other. The lapped edges referred to are deflected, as stated, preferably to extend at such an angle to the body portions of the sheets carrying them that a. line drawn through the apex portions 9 and 10 of these sheets will extend obliquely upwardto the left in Fi 5 from its lower end to its upper end. 7 F0 owing the deflection of the lapped edges of the sheets 7 and 8, to the positions stated, these-sheets are subjected at these lapped portions to a, rolling action, "preferably a cold-rolling action, for the purpose of flattening those portions of the sheets .which extend beyond the faces thereof,

smoothing the metal, causing the structure formed of the plates to be of substantially uniform thickness, and hardening the metal which by the welding operation ieferred to, became annealed, this smoothening and hardening operation being performed either at both surfaces of the united sheet structure or at one side only thereof, as desired.

The mechanism shown for conditioning the sheets 7 and 8 as shown in Fig. 5 and S11 jecting them to a rolling action at both sides of the welded joint, for the purpose stated, and which, as to its general features of construction is of well-known construction, comprises a supporting structure of any desirable form, represented at 11 and its upper end bifurcated at 13 tion 14 and the upper, arm portion 15, the portion 15 being equipped with a verticallydisposed guide 16 engaged by a vertically the position of which is controlled by the mechanism hereinafter described. The mechanism also comprises two p airs of rolls 18, 19, and 21, the rolls 18 and 19 being swaging rolls to deflect the united sheets 7 and 8 into the condition to afford the lower, horn porshown in Fig. '5, and the'rolls 20 and 21 bein provided for rolling'out the metal at the oint into theconditlon shown in Fig. 6. The lower rolls 19 and 21 of the two sets are journaled in the horn 14 and'the upper rolls 20 and 22in the arm 1 5to extend directly above the rolls 19 and 21, re-

spectively, the upper rolls being driven as by means of the gear 22 journaled on the head 17 and meshing with pinions 23 and 24 on the rolls 18 and 20, respectively, the gear 22 being shown as driven by a' belt 25 from a motor 26 su ported on the head 17. The rolls 18 an 19: are peripherally grooved, as represented at 27 and 28,.respectively, these rolls being s aced apart at theirperipheries a distance su stantially equal to the thickness of the sheetsand-ofi'set in a horizontal plane a distance not less than the width of thelapped portions of the sheets and to an extent suflicient to cause the peripheral portions of each roll at opposite sides of the cove therein to engage bothsheets at one ace of the latter .and at points beyond the overlap of the sheets, as shown in Fig. 5, whereby the sheet structure is deformed into the cross-sectional shape shown in this figure wherein the sheets 7 and 8 extend in the same'plane.

The machine also comprises idemeans for guiding into the swaging ro s the sheets 7 and 8 in overlapped united condition, the particular means illustrated comprising a block 29 rigid on the horn 14 and presentmg the stepped surfaces 30 and 31 with the riser portion 32 extending lengthwise of the horn, and a! cooperating presser block 33 presenting the stepped surfaces 34 and 35 and riser portion 35*, likewise extending lengthwise of the horn the block .33 bein so located, as shown in ig. 4, that a gener Z-shaped space is rovided between the blocks 29 and 33. e block33 is. carried by the head 17 through the medium of screws 36 and 37 which extend loosely and slidingly. at their threaded ends through verticaland horizontal openings 38 and 39, respectively, in the head 17 and screw into the block 33, coil springs 40 and 41 which surround the-inner ends of the screws 36 and 37 bein confined between theblock 33 and the hea 17 and operating to yieldingl force ture, wardl against the QPpBd surfaces 30 and the block 33 downward and toward t e, left in Fig. 2, thereby firmly forcing the strucormed of the eets 7 and 8, down- 31an a inst the riser 32 asshown in Fi --2. a ndf4,, wherebythe sheet structure-in as movement through the machineis held to a definite path in its travel. In theuse of the machine'the sheet-structure is f e'd into theguide means'2932 to the position shown and in between the swaging rolls which draw the sheet structuretherethrough swaging it-to the condition'shown in'Fig. 4

and feeding it to the rolls 20 and 21 which latter also exert a pulling action on the sheet structure and roll its opposite faces at the joint thereof into hardened condition substantially ,as shown in Fig. 6.

The mechanism shown is adapted for the making of hollow cylindrical articles, such as the body-portions of containers and to this end is adapted to be manipulated, after the joint is 'swaged and rolled, for permitting the ready removal of the article from the machine, by movement opposite to that in swaging and rolling the sheet. This is provided for by the vertically movable head 17 carrying the block 33 and rolls 18 and 20,

with which cooperatemeans whereby the block 33 and rolls 18 apd 20 may be moved into and out of position of cooperation with the block 29 and rolls 19 and 21 to perform their respective functions as above stated,

' these means being shown as comprising a out to a position in which it passes. beyond the line of juncture of the sheets and is pressed into the opposite sheet, and thus the sheets are not weakened by the thinning of the metal at the portions adjacent the joint, as wouldbe the case were the metal of the sheets at the joint rolled into overlapping position against the opposite sheets. I

' The cold-rolling of the sheets, asstated, operates not only to smoothen the metal at opposite surfaces of the sheet metal structure, but also servesto harden the metal at the joint which, by the welding action, be-

came softened. The result therefore is a smooth hardened joint which is highly resistant to stresses tendin to disrupt it and which may be'maintaine 'in sanitary condi- "tion.

Under some conditions it may be desirable to harden and smoothen the joint at one only of the sheet structure, and this may be accomplished in any suitable way. t may be stated thatin practicing my inproved method itis not necessary that the edges'of the parts of the sheets to be overlapped informing the joint, be specially prepared, as for example bevelled or chamered, ,and thus an operation involving ex} pen s'egis eliminated with-resultant economy. While I7"have illustrated and described particularways in which my improved method maybe practiced, I do not wish to be understood as intending to it thereto as the same may be practiced in other my invention.

- by Letters Patent, is:

- What I claim as new, and desire to secure 1. The method of uniting the edges of metal members which conslsts in lapping adjacent edges of the members, uniting the lapped edges, deflecting the members to cause the'lap'ped edges to expand in opposite directions and thereafter rolling the members at the joint. I

2. The method of uniting the edges of metal members which consists in lappingadjacent edges of the members, uniting the lapped edges, deflecting the members to cause the lapped edges to extend in opposite directions and thereafter rolling the members at the joint at oppositefaces thereof.

3. The method of uniting the edges of metal members which consists in lapping Certificate of adjacent edges of the members, welding the lapped edges, deflecting the members to cause the lapped edges to extend in opposite directions and thereafter rolling the members at the joint.

4. The method of uniting the edges of metal members which cons sts in lapping adjacent edges of the members, step-welding the lapped edges, deflectingthe members to cause the lappededges to extend in opposite directions and thereafter rolling the members at the joint.

5. The method of uniting the edges of sheet metal members, which consists in producing a joint wherein the members are lapped at their adjacent edges with their opposin surfaces united and with-the members de ected to cause the lapped edges to extend in opposite directions, and'thereafter flattening the metal at said joint.-

ARTHUR MILLER.

(L'orrection.

' It is hereby certified that in-Letters Patent No. 1,529,445, granted March 10, 1925, upon the application of Arthur Miller, of Oak Park,'Ill1no1s, for an mprovement in The Art of Uniting Metal Members, an error appears in the prmtedspecification requiring correction asiollows: Page 3, line 10, claim 1, for the word expand read extend) and that the said correction therein that the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 31st day ofMarch,

Letters Patent should be read withthis same may conform to the record of the case in the KARL FENNING, Acting omissions?- 0 Patents. 

